[ilovejedd]

I'm building a couple of new low budget PC's which would double duty as Media Browser front-ends.


Case: Thermaltake SD101, $110

PSU: included 180W, $0

MB: ASRock H81M-ITX, $60

GPU: integrated graphics, $0

RAM: Kingston 2x2/4GB DDR3 1333 (on-hand), $0

HDD: Samsung 830 128GB (on-hand), $0

ODD: LG Blu-ray Drive UH12NS30, $40


Still undecided on the CPU but have been considering the following:


CPU: Intel Celeron G1820 2.7GHz 2MB L3, $50

CPU: Intel Pentium G3220 3.0 GHz 3MB L3, $65


Aside from the clock speed and cache, are there any other differences between the G1820 and G3220 in terms of graphics performance, features, etc? Is there any good reason to bump up to a Core i3 or something? Just want to know the limitations of these processors so I have an idea what I can and can't do with them (e.g. Hi10P, LAV filters, 4K, etc). Also, would adding a discrete GPU down the road give me some of those features or is the CPU just too big of a bottleneck?

 

[wiley165]

If you want 3D capability, then the i3 is needed. For simple 2D playback, the Celeron is sufficient. I have yet to see definitive data regarding Hi10p, and depending on what you expect for LAV and 4K...read this article:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7007/intels-haswell-an-htpc-perspective


Yes, Intel HD Graphics on the Pentium and Celeron are capable of 4K resolution. Video playplack of 4K material is a different story.


See this thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1513039/a6-6400k-poweful-enough-for-my-htpc-requirements#post_24267615


and this one:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1514654/pentium-g3420-poweful-enough-for-my-htpc-requirements


Another post regarding Hi10p:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1494341/looking-for-300-htpc-for-hi10p-playback

 

[Aleron Ives]

You can't use DXVA for 10-bit video, so having only the integrated graphics isn't a limiting factor for that. A good rule of thumb is to assume that 10-bit video will need 1.3x as much processing power as comparable 8-bit video, and any modern CPU shouldn't even break a sweat with 8-bit 1080p, so 10-bit 1080p shouldn't be a problem, either.

 

[ilovejedd]



Quote:
Originally Posted by wiley165  /t/1525577/new-builds-haswell-differences#post_24561997


If you want 3D capability, then the i3 is needed. For simple 2D playback, the Celeron is sufficient. I have yet to see definitive data regarding Hi10p, and depending on what you expect for LAV and 4K...read this article:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) http://www.anandtech.com/show/7007/intels-haswell-an-htpc-perspective


Yes, Intel HD Graphics on the Pentium and Celeron are capable of 4K resolution. Video playplack of 4K material is a different story.


See this thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1513039/a6-6400k-poweful-enough-for-my-htpc-requirements#post_24267615


and this one:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1514654/pentium-g3420-poweful-enough-for-my-htpc-requirements


Another post regarding Hi10p:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1494341/looking-for-300-htpc-for-hi10p-playback

Thanks for all those links. Very good info there. Reading those threads, I reckon all our immediate needs (Hi10p, 2D Blu-ray, Netflix, ATSC/QAM) can be easily served by the Celeron G1820. As always though, there's the temptation to go overkill. Still undecided whether I'll get the G1820 and G3220 but at least now I know I either will work just fine for me. I've already got an i5-4570 build in the works so don't really need CPU power on these two builds.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Aleron Ives  /t/1525577/new-builds-haswell-differences#post_24562074


You can't use DXVA for 10-bit video, so having only the integrated graphics isn't a limiting factor for that. A good rule of thumb is to assume that 10-bit video will need 1.3x as much processing power as comparable 8-bit video, and any modern CPU shouldn't even break a sweat with 8-bit 1080p, so 10-bit 1080p shouldn't be a problem, either.

Good to know!

 

[wiley165]



Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovejedd  /t/1525577/new-builds-haswell-differences#post_24562956


... Still undecided whether I'll get the G1820 and G3220 but at least now I know I either will work just fine for me...

Typically the difference from the Celeron to the Pentium is only a few bucks. I think it's safe to say that if the difference is within $10, go with the Pentium.

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by wiley165  /t/1525577/new-builds-haswell-differences/0_100#post_24563459


Typically the difference from the Celeron to the Pentium is only a few bucks. I think it's safe to say that if the difference is within $10, go with the Pentium.

100mhz is worth about $8 I think.

 

[ilovejedd]



Quote:
Originally Posted by wiley165  /t/1525577/new-builds-haswell-differences#post_24563459


Typically the difference from the Celeron to the Pentium is only a few bucks. I think it's safe to say that if the difference is within $10, go with the Pentium.

It's $15-20 and I'm building two so $30-40 diff total. That said, I'm leaning towards the Pentium.